Vehicle-frame.



A. W. WALL. VEHICLE FRAME.

APHLPLIOATION FILED AUG. 7, 1909 .4

.Patented Mar. 18, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A. W. WALL. .l VEHICLE FRVAME. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 7', 1909.

1 a SHEETS-:IREM 2.

w y I //fy Patented I1Ia.r. 18,1913.Y

A. W. WALL.

VEHICLE FRAME.

AIPLIOATION FILED AUG. 7, 1909.

Patented Mar.18,1913.`

3,` SHEETS-SHEET 3.

PATENT AR'IIIUE W. wALL, or BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND.

f v v'EHIcLE-IRAME.

:Specification of Letters Patent. Patentedluar, 1S, 1913,

y Application med August 7, 196e. serial 110.511,73?.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR WILLIAM WALL, subject of the Kingdom of Great Britain, residing at Roc Motor Works, Aston Road, Birmingham, in the county of Warwick, England, have invented a certain new and useful Vehicle-'Frame, of which the following is aspeciicaton.

This invention comprises an improved motor-cycle frame and it consists ina frame which has for its basis a flat platform eX- tending from the back aXle to the steering head in a single piece whichplatform constitutes footboards for the rider and also a shield to protect him from mud and dust.

Reference may be had to the appended explanatory drawings on which- Figure 1 isa genera-l view showing a motor cycle frame constructed in accordance with `the present invention. Fig. 2 is a plan of the frame shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is amodication showing the base plate of the' frame extended to constitute a rear mudguard. Fig. 4 is a sectionon lineI Y Y of 2. Fig. 5 is a section on line Z Z of 1g. 2.

In the drawings, the frame issupplemented or stiliened by channel, angular or other suitable section, preferably as shown, the side f members A of angle or L section extending from' the rear spindle b to the crown tube c and back to such spindle in4 one single piece. The crown tube or head c' is riveted, bolted, welded or otherwise secured and the angle iron bent by any. suit able means. l

Connectingv the side frames Ay is a base plate D, rivets d bolts or the like being used as the fastening means and being passed through a iange a4 on the side members A.

The base plate D' is preferably adapted to` present a strengthening ange .d4 which togelther with the flange a4 encircles the crown tu e.

In connection with pedalless machines,l

foot boards have been ,employed for the support of the. riders feet but are liable to be broken in case the machine falls whereas by this invention the base plates D form a very efficient support and at t-he same time are free from the possibility of damage eX- isting in other machines as mentioned above.

The base plate D is tapered at d2 near the head of the machine in order not to impede the current of` air for cooling the engine cylinder, such part d2 also serving to catch -t-he dust ormud raised by the front wheel and Soprevent it from being thrown on to Athe rider.

In the modification sho-wn byFig. 3, the cent-ral part of the base platevisextended 'and curved at d3 to form amud-guard for the'rear wheel e; ff being stays to support the outer end of the guard and the plate D may in like mannerbe extended forwardly as shown at d5' for a similar pur pose in connection with the front wheel. The engine G may with advantage be disposed intermediate to the side frames' A and can bolted direct thereto'or torque rods t h as shownvin dottedA lines may be provided. The preferred contour of the frame is as shown, viz. upswept at a to accommodate the back axle 'and allow of a low engine posit-ion and curved at a2 to follow the shape of the front wheel, the intermedi'- parts a. a2 may follow a straight line instead of a curve. The seat tube lc may be jointed to the frame by a bolt lc and T piece k2.

The advance presented by this invention will at once be evident as appurtenances such as foot boards and devices for protecting the rider vfrom mud are for the first time enabled to constitute part of the frame, and thereby very materially addingto the strength and durability of the latter. Furthermore the foot boards with the particular manner in which they are combinedwith the front mud guard and also continued in a backward direction tothe rear of the vehicle, are rendered particularly rigid, and inconveniences hitherto experienced by-reason of breakageare thus removed.

According to my invention, a much lower disposition of the frame may beyobtained, and the number of reaches greatly reduced, by providing a single pair of angle reaches having relatively high vertical .angle portions to resist the stress in one direction, and a single transversely flat and relatively wide base reach, secured to the angle reaches, and adapted to resist stress in another direction. It will be seen that the function of the wide base reach, in projectinglaterall of the angle reaches, is not only to stiften the frame against lateral stress, but .to provide outwardly dis osed foot-rests and mudguards. It wil therefore vbe seen that the extension of the base reach, laterally of By means of this construction I avoid the ate portion a3 being stra-ight. If desired theoEEIoE.

the angle reaches, performs a dual function.

necessity of superposed .pairs of reaches and I obtain a drop frame whichis open, entirely,- above the reaches and which provides 1 for all-the rigidity heretofore obtained by 4 extending from said journal centers to said.

superposed pairs of reaches." y

It will thus be understood that' the present invention provides an open type of frame which while being considerably in advance of previous framesV particularly in regard to strength is at 'the same time constructed with a minimum of joints.

Having now described my invention, I declare that what I claim is zl 1. In a motor cycle, the combination with a rear fork having wheel journal centers and a seat post tube connected with the fork at its upper end, a front fork f lube, a longitudinally disposed pair of anglenreaches front tube and secured rigidly to the latter, said reaches being spaced apart from each other. and having relatively high vertical of and to said front tube, said base reach being relatively narrow at its front end and being widened and projecting laterally from both sides of the an le reaches at their downwardly sloping orward portions to form mud guards, and said base reach being further widened alongthe central horizontal portions of said angle reaches to form laterally projecting foot rests on opposite sides thereof and to stiften the frame, the rear end of said base being forked to accommodate the rear wheel, an engine mounted on said base reach between the angle reaches, rods connecting the engine with the front fork tube, rods connecting the engine with the vertical angle portions of said angle reaches near their upper rear ends, and means connecting the seat post tube between the vertical angle portions of said angle reaches at a point forwardly of the forked portions of said base reach, substantially as described.

2. In a motor cycle, the combination with a rear fork having wheel journal centers and a seat post tube connected with the rear fork, a front fork tube, a longitudinally disposed pair of angle reaches extending from said journal centers to said front tube and secured rigidly to the latter, said angle reaches having relatively high vertical angle portions and horizontally disposed flanges extending throughout the length of said angle reaches, and a transversely flat plate or strip-like base reach shaped to conform to theangle reaches and extending throughout the lengt-h thereof and rigidly secured to the horizontal flanges of the angle reaches and to said front/tube, said base reach being relatively narrow at its front end and projecting laterally from the outer sides of the said angle reaches near the central portions thereof to form relatively wide foot rests and to stiifen the frame against lateral stress, the rear end of the base reach being forked to accommodate the rear wheel, an engine mounted on said base reach between the angle reaches, means secured to the engine and to said angle reaches for anchoring the engine into position, and means for anchoring the lower end of said seat post tube to the vertical angle port-ions of said angle reaches, substantially as described.

IIn witnesswhereof I have hereunto set my liandlin the presenceof two witnesses.

ARTHUR W. WALL.

Witnesses:

ROWLAND L. GooLD, WALTER H. E. BAR'rLAM. 

